Waters Calling

I am more poet than fisherman. For that reason, when the waters call my name I choose fly fishing because I deem it more art than sport. Like verse aloft and prose landing feather-like on quiet waters, fly fishing is literature of the highest form. This poetry of motion is balm for a hurried soul and therapy for a ragged mind. Please excuse, I sense the waters calling me to compose...

The Choice Has Never Been More Clear

Barack Obama did offer one truth at the Democratic National Convention in the middle of a mountain of half truths, twisted truths and blatant untruths. That one statement was that in this election, the choice has never been more clear. Focus on whatever issue one chooses, the paths delineated by the Democratic party and the Republican party differ widely--the Democratic platform leads radically to the left; the Republican party leads strongly to the right. And while many speak only of economic recession and resurgence, the most critical contrast for me in this election is a moral one. The official Democratic Party platform aggressively promotes same-sex marriage and abortion on demand. The official Republican Party platform stands upon and promotes traditional family values and the sanctity of human life. Obamacare demands institutions to relinquish freedom of religion, while Republicans fight to defend it. It is obvious to me that this then is a moral divide and that to vote for a Democratic candidate is an immoral choice.

So, finally after a term as a failed leader, we have heard Mr. Obama utter truth. Ours is a clear choice. But more significantly, ours is a moral choice. For me, I choose traditional morality and that means I will cast my vote for morality in America on November 6 by electing Mitt Romney as the next president of this one nation under God.

Spinning the Truth

Barack Obama and his political party does do one thing well--they can spin the facts faster than LeBron James does a basketball on his best day. But this time the liberal media got one right. CNN wire staff reported following Tuesday night's Democratic National Convention that a statement repeated throughout the night was at best misleading. The Democratic speakers quoted the number 4.5 million several times in reference to new job creation during Obama's time in office. "Despite incredible odds and united Republican opposition, our president took action, and now we've seen 4.5 million new jobs," said San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro, the party's keynote speaker on Tuesday night.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick both cited the same number. However, according to CNN: "While a total of 4.5 million jobs sounds great, it's not the whole picture. Nonfarm private payrolls hit a post-recession low of 106.8 million that month, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The figure currently stands at 111.3 million as of July. While that is indeed a gain of 4.5 million, it's only a net gain of 300,000 over the course of the Obama administration to date. The private jobs figure stood at 111 million in January 2009, the month Obama took office.

And total nonfarm payrolls, including government workers, are down from 133.6 million workers at the beginning of 2009 to 133.2 million in July 2012. There's been a net loss of nearly 1 million public-sector jobs since Obama took office, despite a surge in temporary hiring for the 2010 census.

Meanwhile, the jobs that have come back aren't the same ones that were lost.

According to a study released last week by the liberal-leaning National Employment Law Project, low-wage fields such as retail sales and food service are adding jobs nearly three times as fast as higher-paid occupations."

Spin the truth as fast as you can, there are still fewer people working now than when Obama took office at the height of the recession.

Mitt Romney Is Not The Messiah, But ...

Mitt Romney is not the Messiah... but he is desperately needed at this juncture in the history of the United States. While the media pundits downplay the contrast between candidates, differences that matter could not be more stark. The incumbent plays to the camera and his policies are bankrupt--morally and financially. The Republican challenger is a man of value, morality and proven ability--corporately and domestically. This is not about control of the oval office; this is about the soul of America. No, Mitt Romney is not the Messiah. However, he is a man worthy of leading America and able to right the careening ship that Mr. Obama is defaulting to the ocean floor.

Reluctant Evolution

Change is inevitable externally and should be embraced internally, but I confess to frequent bursts of reluctance. Something about sameness conjures an illusion of wholeness, while possibly masking stagnation. Yet these days I am forced to admit certain unexpected evolution personally. Growing up my concern was always serving God and others with such intensity that I disdained any thought of material success or financial security. I was following the way of the cross and way of St. Francis, thinking the cross incompatible with commerce and service at odds with financial security. Years later, I find myself Director of Major Gifts for a private institution, immersed in scrutiny of financial markets, giving trends in the private sector, and gift & estate planning options. What's more, over the past few years I've met gracious and generous Kingdom minded people that just so happen to be persons that work hard to earn a profit. Commerce is not the enemy of the Cross after all and servanthood may be found at the top rung of the corporate ladder.

Another component of this silent self-evolution is the accelerated dawning that politics are not of the devil and that Christians should aggressively participate--promoting and insisting on morality, virtue and integrity in elected leaders, from the White House to the State House. Never before in this country has it been as necessary to rouse the Christian army to full political stature. We cannot hide behind stained glass, hoping this pall shadow will pass. I am finally ready for muscular political involvement in order to preserve this one nation under God. Lest I leave this paragraph vague, let me encourage every American to vote for Mitt Romney for president on November 6!